Review - The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023)

         Hey guys, Chuck here, and this is my review of the new movie The Hunger Games The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, directed by Francis Lawrence and released by Lionsgate Films. Based on the novel by Suzanne Collins, this movie serves as a prequel story to The Hunger Games , and stars Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Hunter Schafer, Jason Schwartzman, Ashley Liao, Josh Andrés Rivera, Burn Gorman, Peter Dinklage, and Viola Davis. 

         So, for a bit of context of when this story takes place, the exact timeline is sixty-four years before Katniss Everdeen volunteered as Tribute for District 12 in the 74th annual Hunger Games competition. So, at this point in time, the Hunger Games are not quite the spectacular extravaganza we know them to be from the earlier movies. No Tribute Center, no training for the Tributes, no lavish prizes or Victor's Villages for the Victors. None of that. The Games are, quite honestly, at their most primitive. No stylists or prep teams for the Tributes. Just the Reaping Ceremony, the train ride to the Capitol, the Games themselves. and a train ride home for the Victor. So, as you can imagine, pretty basic and not very interesting. 

         And, this is one of the major plot points of the movie: make the Hunger Games and event worthy of watching every year. And, this is where the students of the Capitol's prestigious school, The Academy, come into play, as twenty-four of them have an opportunity to forever change the Games, including serving as Mentors for the Tributes in the 10th annual Hunger Games. One of these students is eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow, who is assigned to District 12 Tribute Lucy Gray Baird. 

        Now, one thing that is important to note is that this movie is the story of Coriolanus Snow. From his time in the Capitol serving as a Mentor for the Hunger Games, to his time as a Peacekeeper in District 12, and over the course of the movie the seeds staring to grow, and shades of the tyrannical man we know him to be in the Hunger Games series. And you definitely see that in Tom Blyth's performance as Snow. Just one look in his eyes and you can see that he, very much, is the younger version of the man famously played by Donald Sutherland in the earlier Hunger Games movies. One nice touch, for me, was they added the archived recording of Donald Sutherland as Snow saying "It's the things we love most that destroy us."

         Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray, who is both Snow's Hunger Games tribute, and eventually his love interest, was also fantastic. Now, for those who want to know how Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray compares to Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss, there really is no comparison. Katniss was the reluctant hero, the symbol that only wanted to keep her loved ones safe. Lucy Gray is a performer who looks to stand out and put on an amazing show. Which, given the character's background as a folk singer, she definitely stands out. And, over the course of the movie, we see a romance bloom between Snow and Lucy Gray, but is is definitely a tragic romance. One destined to define the man that Coriolanus Snow is meant to become. 

       Aside from Lucy Gray, Snow's predominant connections are with his best friend Sejanus Plinth, and the other members of the Snow family: his cousin Tigris, and their grandmother Grandma'am. Both Hunter Schafer and Fionnula Flanagan were, for their limited screen time, really good as Tigris and Grandma'am. Josh Andrés Rivera, meanwhile, was fantastic in his portrayal of the tragic Sejanus Plinth. 

        Jason Schwartzman is also in the movie as Lucky Flickerman, a Capitol weatherman who is selected as the first host of the Hunger Games, and he is also very much a showman, and definitely entertaining to watch in the early parts of the movie. On the other side of the spectrum is Burn Gorman as Commander Hoffman of the District 12 Peacekeepers. He definitely plays the hard-nosed, no-nonsense commander with a very stellar performance. 

        Finally, there's Peter Dinklage as Casca Highbottom and Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia Gaul. Dinklage gives a bit of an underperformance as the morphling-addicted Academy Dean and creator of the Hunger Games, but that's actually pretty on point with the character in the book. Davis, meanwhile, is delightfully evil and devious as the mad scientist and Head Gamemaker of the Hunger Games. Both are phenomenal actors, and both were very well cast with their roles, but the better performer of the two was definitely Davis. 

         Music is a very prominent thing in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Not only is the score by composer James Newton Howard absolutely fantastic, but the songs performed throughout the movie by Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray were also fantastic. Zegler sings with a very Southern twang, very much like Dolly Parton, and her singing is easily one of the best things about her performance, especially with her rendition of the famous Hunger Games ballad "The Hanging Tree," the origins of which are revealed in the movie. 

        The visual look of The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is also fantastic, combining a feeling of being futuristic but retro at the same time. This is especially seen in the Capitol, with analog technology and older-style televisions. Also, seeing the Capitol rebuilding from the war, which was showcased at the beginning of the movie, was pretty unique, and goes to show the difference between the era this movie takes place in and the era of the previous Hunger Games movies. Also, seeing how primitive the Games were, taking place in an abandoned gladiatorial arena as opposed to the Arenas seen in the first two Hunger Games movies just goes to show how much Snow influenced the evolution of the Games after the events of this movie. 

        Unfortunately, I do have to agree with the other critics. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes does have a pacing and tonal shift problem, which will probably be more noticable by those who didn't read the book. I, however, did read the book, and I do agree that the final third, seeing Snow as a Peacekeeper, would have been better saved for a follow-up film, as it didn't fit tonally with the first two thirds. Or perhaps The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes would have been better suited as a streaming miniseries on Amazon or something. However, we got it as a movie, and I am totally okay with that. 

       Overall, I enjoyed The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. It was great getting to return to the world of Panem and see who Snow was in his youth. And, it was very accurate to the book it was based on. So, even with my issues with the pacing, tone, and a few of the performances, I definitely recommend it for fans of The Hunger Games, both the books and the movies. I'm giving The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes a rating of 4.85/5. 

       Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and I will see you guys next time.